Project Photos** Finally** 28 Willys

OK.
So I am finally posting photos of my project.

The truck is a combination of misc stuff. Boady and frame is 1928 Willys Whippet Series 98 Sedan. Engine is a 91 Bmw 850I 5.0 V12 backed with a 4spd automatic ******. The engine and trans are all aluminum so it weighs about 175 pounds less than a small block chevy. I ditched the stock fuel injection and went with 2 Holley 4bbl carbs. Still working on the intake. Front suspension is 30 ford straight axel with 56 Ford drum brakes. Rear suspension is from a 97 Lincoln Mark VIII. Fuly independent aith a Ford 8.8 center section. I still have a ton of metal work to do still. I am having a hard time figuring out to chop or not to chop??????
Wheel base is pretty large 134inches from center to center

 

Nice start. Really neat idea for the V-12 and IRS but you better get out your flame suit. I vote for no chop but maybe 2-3 inches channeled on just the back of the body just to even the line out a bit. Right now for me it's just a tad to nose down.

 

I want to change the front rims to Spokes and I have larger rear tires to go on it. Anybody have a set of front spoke rims that will fit I am running 56 Ford drums with a 5 on 5.5 bolt pattern

 

So here is a little update on the Willys.

After some body stole my bed I moved the truck into my new shop and decided to take things one step farther. I removed the body to realign everything, the guys that sectioned the body did a horriable job. While I was at it I flush mounted my doors and then I shave all of the hinges and installed a set of suicide hinges. I will up load photos of the body later.

I replace that scary front axle with a 4" dropped tube axle new brakes, backing plates shocks. Basically I replaced the entire front end. Had everything powdercoated candy red and black.

A while back I was talking about putting a blower on the V12, well now I did. Here are some photos of the ch***is with the blower almost finished.

 

thats pretty bad ***! i would love to hear what that blown V12 is going to sound like!

 

Nice!!! Great to see some one use their imagination.....keep the pics coming

 

i like the dual cones on each side. that thing will be a rocket! how are you gonna do ignition? is it not computer controlled?

 

Wow your gonna have people scratchin thier heads over the motor,I cant believe some ***wipe stole the bed

 

i like the exhaust

 

BMW made it easy on me for the ignition. They use two magnetic crank triggers one for each bank of 6 I removed the distrubitors and had them machined so I can set a manual advance and two MSD 6AL boxes to handle the retard. Two coils and thats about it. Very clean

 

Always good to see something different!

 

Can you post a bigger picture of the concept drawing in your avatar??

Interesting project. Would like to hear more about why you chose what you chose for this car; engine, suspension, etc.? What are you doing for steering? Will you be choosing something else for wheels and tires I presume?

That BMW powerplant is very cool as is the rear suspension. Sort of out of the norm for this place, but I like "outside the box" projects like this.

I vote chop, but am curious about the overall effect you're going for. Please tell us more. With that modern engine I would sure like to see more complimentary body lines to give it more of a modern hot rod look, but that's just me. Tell us more...

 

id love to hear that engine. while it aint trad, it looks it!
guess you didnt find your bed then.
i vote chop, but i just like to cut things up.

 

That concept drawing was done by Chris Dotson for the Pinkees RPU it was one of a series he did.

 

No I never found the bed, but another great HAMB'er gave me a cherry 27 T bed. The bed sides are so perfect I dont want to chop it down. Anybody have a chopped down bed they want to trade for a really really nice T bed.

The motor ******, truck, rear suspension all happened by accident.

First of all I love a V12. I had a Flat head V12 from a seagrave fire engine I was going to put in my 30 Sedan. I realized the Flathead V12 weighed a ton so I started looking at jag V12's and I ran across this BMW 12 by accident. It came out of a 91 850I with 55000 miles. the car had an interior fire. I made the guy a stupid offer and he took it. $300 for the motor and ******.

Got it home and decided it was the wrong motor for my sedan. So I put the motor in storage.

I found the truck in Portland. It started life as a 28 Willys Whippet Sedan. The pic from my avatar is for a hot rod mag. The guy that I bought the truck from was reading the hot rod mag and saw a concept drawing of a chopped down Model A Sedan and thought hey I can do that to the willys. So he called some guys they chopped it did a **** job and the truck sat for many years, until his wife got involved. I dont have a larger pic of the avatar photo. I wish I knew what Hot Rod mag it was from.

OK Steering
You cant see in the photo very well but the steering box is in the cowl.

I might chop the top still trying to decide

 

Wow! Great deal! I would find a project for it also!

Do you have a particular era that you're building to? Maybe a "future concept hot rod" style similar to Pinkees?

How are you metal working skills?

 

Okay, was thinking about this project and here's a sketch I did. Sorry for the messy detail call-outs. I also forgot to draw hairpins/split bones in there. D'OH!

You have the unique opportunity to do something with a very bad *** drive train. I think the caliber of the body and mechanics should be considered very carefully so it all grooves together and doesn't look like a mish-mosh of parts thrown together. I'm thinking LESS IS MORE and clean up the lines and proportions and get the front end mechanics up to par with the rear.

These are just my opinions, but here's what I would do if it were me:

(NOTE: These are only my opinions based on my tastes. Not looking to offend, just add some ideas)

1) Take 4-6 inches out of the roof and add a rain gutter
2) Lean the rear forward just a little bit
3) Raise the cowl top up and add to the cowl sides so the windshield can be a little more proportional to the side and rear windows as well as giving you a matched hood line to the grille shell and help get the engine below the top of the cowl. Your cowl is VERY low by comparison to other makes of this year.
4) Extend the upper body line into the raised cowl area and ending it a few inches before the firewall
5) Blend the bed with the body lines. They're real close already. Go the extra mile. The sides are flat and easy to add material to.
6) Match the front of the bed with the rear of the cab
7) Add a lower front panel to the bed to blend the body into the bed and retain that low and aggressive appearance to the stance (would probably have to modify the frame a little in this area)
8) Tall wheels and tires with some wide, more agressive looking tires out back. Dirt track tires maybe??
9) Simple tail lights and simple headlights mounted on simple stands.
10) Front suspension should really match the capabilities of the rear. This car is going to haul *** if you allow it to. Maybe consider an underslung front suspension or another type of dropped axle with BIG brakes of some kind to take full advantage of that drive train!
11) Maybe consider moving the radiator to the bed to allow you to keep the wheelbase from getting too long. Could use electric fans and hide the whole thing under scoops or lovers in the bed.
12) Consider maybe mechanical injection or maybe something more injected LOOKING for the engine instead of two 4bbl carbs. This is an exotic engine and very obvious that's it's a NEWER engine, but it doesn't have to look it. Side draft SU's or something wild like that would look just as exotic and not break the bank. Even a bunch of Holley 94's or Strombergs would be pretty neat. 4 or 5 Carter WCD's?? Lots to choose from but it better flow some CFMs for sure! There is MORE than enough power there to move this tiny truck.

Picture I grabbed from your photo host and softened it up a bit. Shows the potential of an agressive and low stance...




And here's the sketch I did. The cab probably should have been a little longer through the doors, but I think you get where I was going with it.

 

We are on the same page for the truck build.

Radiator is in the bed
The body line is too high on the doors to extent to the cowl I would have to cut it out and lower it, the line does wrap around the back of the truck I just dont have it on yet,

I do want the shape of the bed to match the shape of the cab, with a lower valance that ends before the rear axle.

I did raise the cowl up 3.5 inches (we fixed the rust)

the windows are very large so I do think a 4" chop is in order.

The doors are actually 7" longer than a model A this truck is pretty long.
I wanted a hilborn style fuel injection system until I saw the price way way way out of my budget. For now it will be blown and I always have the option to change it later.

Wheels and tires. I do not like the haldibrand style wheels I was thinking more along the lines of wire wheels and tall and skinny tires in front and something meaty out back.

An underslung front axle would be nice and is still a possiability I was also thinking 1/4 elliptical. I would like to shorten up the truck a little and both of those would help.

My sheet metal working skills kind of ****. I am in the process of trying to find some help. I live in Santa Rosa Ca if you know anybody out here

 

what kind of power does that motor make without the blower? thats perty cool

 

315hp
400torque

 

Gotcha! Yeah, I like the tall spokes idea. That would rule for sure! Ala Golden Sub (Dan Web). Just sort of threw those Halis on there for effect.

Good thinking on the 1/4" ellipticals!

Right on man! Good luck with the build! Gonna be cool for sure!

Again, hope the suggestions weren't offensive.

Cheers!

 

I am unoffendable
thanks for the input

 

Friday I left work a litttle early and went straight to the shop, and I chopped my truck 4" im not quite done yet but here are some before and after photos.


and the top comes off


setting it back in place






BEFORE

AFTER


I kept the back window the same size and dropped it down 4"

What do you think

 

Chop looks very nice. You probably don't want to hear this, but it looks a lot better with the smaller rear tires in the before picture. I'm just sayin'.

 

yeah I go back and forth on the tires.

 

But, thereagain, smaller tires won't hold your hosrepower in a truck that light. Doh, Now you got me goin back and forth.

 

Thats why I bought two sets of rear tires....

 

I think it's the track width of the rear throwing it off, looks way to wide for me, but that's just my opinion.

 

With the wide tires it wont fit in my garage at home.

 

Very cool!! I like it!!